5 Short Stories To Read On Halloween

short stories to read on Halloween – Credit: http://rowshark.tumblr.com/

Are you older than 15? Then it’s likely that you got your Halloween boozing, puking, and passing out done with over the weekend. This year Halloween has the misfortune to fall on Wednesday, which isn’t the best night for devil’s play or imbibing some spirits, which forced the adult-like festivities to take place on a night other than the 31st. So, once that door bell stops ringing at 8:30-ish, what do you do?

Most folks entertain themselves with horror movies on Halloween night, which is fine; we do it too and we’re not going to give that up anytime soon. What we are suggesting, however, is that you add something a little different to the loot of fun. Read! Read a short story with some element of horror in it.

So, whether you’re hunkered down because of that piece of shit, Frankenstorm, or you’re somewhere more forgiving and need something to do after the trick ‘r treaters have TP’d your home, we’ve selected 5 short stories to read on Halloween. Read them all or just pick one.

This article sponsored by No Child Left Behind — just kidnapped and forced to eat apples with razor blades inserted into them.

No.5 “Young Goodman Brown”

Nathaniel Hawthorne

Written in 1835, set in 17th century Puritan New England, Nathaniel Hawthorne penned “Young Goodman Brown” to convey a sense of depravity in all mankind. For me, he states that evil exists in all of us, or as Rob Zombie would put it, “The Devil is in all of us.” The story is rife with Christian references that point to purity, but all of that gets lost by the end.

It might not be the most terrifying story today, but try to imagine a midnight stroll through the dark woods with Satan at your side. Yeah, that’s what I thought.

No.4 “The Black Cat”

Edgar Allan Poe

A list of horrific short stories would hardly be complete with an entry from Edgar Allan Poe. With so many classics to choose from, I settled on “The Black Cat” simply because, by title alone, it echoes Halloween.

First published in 1843, “The Black Cat” is about girls. No, goth girls. No, joking aside, it’s about, as far as I’m concerned, a man who succumbs to alcoholism (no, not from Poe) and becomes psychopathically cruel. Through a series of events, which includes a cat or two, the man kills his wife, walls her up in the cellar, and only gets caught because of guilt and arrogance.

It’s a fast and furious read that’ll get under your skin.

What are the top 3 short stories to read on Halloween? Find out next…

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